THX for all the comments.

@unknownuser said:

Hi:
This has occasionally happened in my modeling. When you get the cue "on face" and you click, a slight movement of your mouse hand will drift it off the cue, while the camera is still focused on the larger plane.
Actually, the curved part of your shape appears to be below the target plane and the other end seems to be above the plane. Your shape is so close to the larger plane that the highlighting shows through your shape and gives the impression that it is coplanar.
Since you have found a solution, this comment is just academic.

No it's not - I think you make some interesting points here.

@unknownuser said:

If your geometry has to be exact, then the extrude intersect procedure will produce a section slightly different in shape and area than if it were already coplanar and intersected. Again, this is a moot point.

Yea, when I was thinking about the extrude/intersect-fix-methode or the drape- methode I relized that the outcome will be actually different shape.

So when something has to be totally exact that is not really the way to go.

The tip with extruding the shape, intersect it and cleaning up has fixed the problem.

But I am still unhapy because I dont get why SU does what it does and I'd like to understand.

@unknownuser said:

I took a look at your model:

#1 The shape does not lay on the surface
#2 when you move the shape to the surface (+- 18,4mm) you will see the shape is not coplanar with the surface.

I belive you that the shape is not coplanar with the surface but I do not understand it.

Because shouldn't it be coplanar with the surface (rectangle) when SU tell me "On Face" ?

• the only other option is that the shape itself is not coplanar, but It sems as it would be, but maybe there is some tiny glitch with it, is there an option to indicate if the shape is planar?

... I was actually thinking that the circumstance that the shape is filled, indicates that it is planar, because if it would not be planar it would not be filled.

THX for your reply.

I was ( I am) aware of the autold function - except that it is called autofold.

Autofold is exactly what I tried to do with my plane shape - but it does not work.

I really think the edges of my shape are closed otherwise It should not be possible to fill it with a surface. 8look at the picture)

@unknownuser said:

In you selection problem: The shape edges may not actually all lie on the face or may not actually be closed.

How can that be that the edges of a plan face may not lie all on the face ?

It is imposible for a plane shape that some points don't lie on a face and some do, that is only able with non planar shapes - or do I get something wrong here.

I uploded the SU file, would be really nice if someone could have a look.

AutoSave_not right.skp

I experience lot's of SU behaviour which I can not explain to myself, maybe somone can clar things up.

e.g.:

When I draw a simple rectangle and then draw a simple circle into it, then they merge togther and wehn I move the circle vertically up a three dimensional shape starts to originates.

That works not just with a cirlce, AFAIk that should work with any face - rectangles, traingles, ..., or with any other flat geometric shape.

I mean I tried it with rectangles, circles, tringles and it works just fine. But it does not work with a 2D shape which I have drawn with the line and the curve tool.

It is not a group or a compound, the 2D shape is closed, so it should actually merge to the surface (reactangel) underneath it but it does not.

When I move it vertically up there is no three dimensional shape starting to build up, why is that so?

I'd like that it doe's that.

Another weerd behaviour is that when I move the 2D shape within the rectangle and then double click on the face sometimes it gets selcetd (surface and boundaries get blue) but sometimes not and the whole rectangle gets selected - so it behaves as the 2D shape would not be closed.

Ok, I played a bit around which made me understand that it is only able to get an arc tangent to an edge when the starting point of the arc, starts somewhere between the endpoints of the edge. when the arc starts directly at the endpoint it does not work to make it tangent.

Well ok - and in this case it is not possible to get an indication when the arc is tangent to the edge?

..is there a work around ?

Hi folks I have a little problem and maybe someone could help me solve it.

I'd like to draw an arc within a rectangle, tangent to the edge of the rectangle, but even if I hover with the mouse to eternity over the edge, this arc indicator never turns magenta saying: "tangent to edge".

What do I do wrong?

I posted the same thread in the LightUp-forum and the main developer of LightUp Adam Billyard gave an aswer which at least solved the first issue.

http://www.lightup4sketchup.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1272&sid=bf3311bb55dba39d75d2f40498140efe

1. An odd thing in Light Up is that when I put a point light source in my model, for example a spot light then the light source itself is not illuminated.
   In the picture the little cylinders on the ceiling are the point light sources.

2. Another issue I have with Light Up is that I can adjust the brightness of a global point light source (light goes evenly in all directions) in lumen (lm) but when I use an IES file for a light with a certain emission characteristic, I cannot change the brightness in lm - I thought this is maybe because the lights from the IES file are not only specific in there emission characteristics, maybe they are specific in there brightness too – but then the IES-files should provide information of the brightness of the light which they refer too in lumen – but they don't.

in the menue bar of SU under: Tools>LightUp "Simple Rendering" was checked, after I unchecked it and then checked normal rendering and restarting SU Light Up is not running in "Simple Mode" anymore

I've just worked sucesfully through you tutorial – thank you for your effort.

The last days I've been working through one of your tutorials every day.

I am playing around with LightUp since 3 days or so and I can not use a lot of it's functions because LightUp is running in "simple mode".

In a thread in the light Up forum I read that this is the case when the graphic card is to weak, but I have a "ATI Radeon HD 4800 Series" graphic card, with this card I am able to play not so old high end PC games like Crysis 2 in maximum resolution, so I think it should be more than able to handle Light Up.

Another thing is that Light Up was not always running in "simple mode", because I can remember that I was able to change some settings which I cannot change anymore (like all the adjust color settings), when I still try to do it the message "not able in simple mode" appears.

Well, maybe this issue is connected to a Ligh tUp crash which I had some time ago, also SU crashes here and then when I have too much stuff in one file.

Has anybody a suggestion for a solution?

Best Regards from Vienna

...damn it, it's just "alt + click"

Hello!

I've just downloaded Light Up from their website and watched the first tutorial and after playing a bit around I tried to make an area light source.

The guy in the tutorial - Adam Billyard - says that the query tool should be hold on the geometry which should function as an are light by holding the control key and a dialogue box will pop up.

But my problem is when I do this nothing happens, no dialogue box pops up.

The geometry in my model which should function as an area light is just a simple grouped extruded rectangular.

Any suggestion why it does not work?

THX for the help, the problem is "the error" occurred in an exercise which I have already deleted, so I can not reproduce this specific situation where it did "not snap", but I had this issue already several times, the next time I have it I will reactivate this thread.

That you suspect that I am not doing it right is my suspicion too – I am mostly right with that.

Well, I had this idea myself, but this green/red dragging cubes won't the hell snap to the point where I'd like them to snap to, they either jump far over or far before.

Is it able to change the size of an object with the scale tool in a certain direction with a certain value?

As far as I know it is only possible to change the size in a certain direction by typing in a percental value (like 0,5 for 50%), an other option is to type in a certain value (like 150mm), – but I often would like to change (increase or decrease) the size in a certain direction with a certain value, as for instance +/- 50 mm.

I tried to type in +50 mm in the measurements toolbar but that did not work. Is it still somehow possible?

THX for the answer.

Hello,

I am quite new to SU and I’ve just finished a model of a room with interior equipment and now I would like to see how different light sources affect the appearance of the room.

My question is which Plug-ins out there are suitable to simulate realistically the effect of certain sources of light?

I would be glad if someone can give me recommendations.

@ely862me THX you very much 4 your help - issue fixed!